Is it ok for weaning calves to eat oats and horse and mule feed?

Answer 1

No. It is probably one of the most unwise management feeding decisions you can make for your calves. It is not advisable nor recommended to feed weaner calves feed that is meant for an animal that has a completely different digestive system--and thus different nutritional requirements--than they.

One big difference is fat content in feed: Young calves, like these weaned calves, should not have more than 4 percent fat in their diet. A horse's diet can have at least 8 percent fat in it, which may affect these calves in a way you wouldn't want to have happen to you. For instance, you may find the feed intake (which affects average daily gain) will decrease if they are fed a ration and cause scouring or diarrhea.

The protein content of this horse feed may be lower than what these calves need: Weaned calves, or calves weighing around 500 to 800 lbs, need 14 percent crude protein in their diet. Feed for mature horses and mules only has 8 to 10 percent protein, which is not enough for these calves.

How much carbohydrate is in the feed will affect your horses negatively but will be what these calves may need. These calves will need around 60 percent TDN in their diet in order to grow. Since you would only supply no more than 0.3 to 0.4 percent of a mature horse's body weight in cereal grains per feeding, that is not nearly enough for these calves, but it may be too much if the feed is too high in fat.

The ratio of calcium to phosphorus for cattle is different than for horses. For your steeds, optimum Ca:P ratio is between 1:1 to 3:1, though it's fine to go up to 6:1. Ideally, for horses, the Ca:P ratio should be 2:1. For cattle, must be fed feed that is between the ratios of 2:1 to 7:1 Ca:P. Also, the K/(Mg+Ca):P ratio (or tetany ratio) for cattle cannot exceed 2.2:1. For horses, such a ratio is unimportant and often ignored because such issues as tetany does not pose a significant risk in equines.

With all this in mind, it is highly recommend you feed your horse and mule feed to your horses and mules, and purchase feed specially formulated and made for your weaner calves.